Alfa Romeo 147 in SILVER 2003 for £14,995

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Why do enthusiasts get so excited at the thought of an Alfa? The rich motorsport heritage? The gorgeous Italian styling? Sure, both are useful in the fight against German rivals, but the firm's real selling point is its engines and its V6 range-topper are the world's finest! So when Alfa was working on a GTA version of its 147 hatch, we wondered how it would find an engine with the right credentials. To take on rivals at the time like the Ford's Focus RS, it would need at least 200bhp, none of the firm's four-pots were up to the task. Surely it wouldn't dare to try to cram in the bigger 156 GTA's 250bhp V6? That would just be ridiculous... We are still barely able to believe it as we stare under the bonnet of this greatest - 147. The 3.2-litre 24-valver looks good even when it's not running, with its chrome pipes and red lettering. But the beauty isn't only skin deep - 300Nm of torque from 4,800rpm is a good start, and no other hot hatch at the time could claim such power. Start it u